Holyhead, a port in Wales, struck by Storm Darragh 10 days ago, it will remain closed until mid-January, in a major blow to 150,000 passengers trying to get to Ireland for Christmas in Britain.
The a port in north-west Wales it is the second largest roll-on ferry in the UK after Dover, and the continued closure is likely to have a major impact on deliveries of cheese, beef and groats.
The supply of Guinness in Britain until Christmas had already run out. The diversion of traffic and cars to Liverpool, and Pembroke and Fisherman in South Wales will also have an effect on Christmas traffic in Belfast.
In a statement, the port of Holyhead said the two ferry terminals “will remain closed until Wednesday 15 January 2015”, adding that the current priority is to safely reopen the port’s Terminal 5 passenger terminal to resume ferries as soon as possible.
However, he said he had taken the decision to keep the terminals closed and was now announcing “to provide certainty to freight customers and carrier operators and to allow them to arrange each other ahead of one of the busiest times of the year.”
He added that part of the Terminal 3 berth structure was “rendered useless” after two incidents on December 6 and 7 during severe weather.
“Given the scale of the damage, it was necessary to carry out underwater inspections of the structural integrity of the adjacent Terminal 3 and Terminal 5 berths, which could only have started once Storm Darragh, early next Tuesday (10th) morning”; he said.
“We understand the closure of ferry terminals will have a significant impact on trade, passengers and customers of the port. We apologize for the disruption it has caused. The safety of our colleagues and customers is our first priority and we will only allow ferry services to resume once it is safe to do so,” he added.
Irish Ferries has confirmed that all sailings on the route to mid-January have been cancelled.
Two main berths were damaged in Storm Darragh 10 days ago, diverting lorry trade to other ports including Penbrok and Birkenhead.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Welsh transport minister, Ken Skates, indicated that he hoped the port would re-open by the end of the week, while Ireland’s figure suggested that a worst-case scenario was possible.
The Welsh Government said the closure would cause concern for travelers over Christmas, but also for workers in Holyhead and businesses reliant on the port.
Plaused Cymru MP Llinos Medi said the closure was “devastating” and called on the government to outline its plan to support investment in the port given its strategic importance to trade and tourism.